IV-504 



of any physical modifications proposed; the limitations of knowledge 

 outlined above, therefore, present a critical problem in present 

 efforts to resolve prohibitive use conflicts. 



The great amount of modification that has already occurred in the 

 estuarine zone has already resolved the problem of use conflicts 1n 

 some estuarine systems by pre-empting or usurping a part of the 

 estuarine resource for a single purpose, 1n many cases making modifications 

 too expensive or otherwise too difficult to change in spite of their 

 effects on the local environment. 



There is little that can be done directly to correct environmental 

 damage associated with past changes, but future demands for prohibitive 

 use in a management unit can be resolved through application of past 

 experience. 



Allocation of part of the estuarine resource for an exclusive single- 

 purpose use is a necessary fact of estuarine management. The shoreline 

 is a necessary location for shipping docks and for swimming beaches, 

 but they cannot both occunv the same place on the shoreline. 

 Similarly, frequently dredged channels and oyster beds cannot occupy 

 the same space at the same time. Resolution of such conflicts can be 

 achieved by allocation of adequate space to each use through whatever 

 institutional mechanism is established. 



